Africa's Miners Face Standoff With Governments

By

John W. Miller,

Devon Maylie And

Alex MacDonald

Feb. 7, 2013 3:29 p.m. ET

CAPE TOWN—AngloGold Ashanti Ltd., the world's number five gold producer, and a partner are considering a $400 million expansion in Mali, a country with a per capita income of around $1,000 a year. But with the country engulfed in conflict, the miner said on Wednesday it would postpone the spending until fighting stops.

All over Africa, it is wait-and-see season for mining executives. At the world's biggest mining conference here this week, top officials from South Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo and other...